Days
by Monniemoo
Summary: Matt quits his job at Gamestop and hitchhikes, not knowing the strange people he will meet on the way. AU crackfic with ensemble cast.
1. The Van

Who the hell in their right mind would build a mall in the middle of nowhere?

This was what Matt thought as he peered out of the GameStop entrance and into the empty hallway of the Plainsville mall. He had seen at most five people wandering the mall at once, and they were always somebody's little brother or sister from high school, or his next door neighbors, or that annoyingly chatty lady from down the street. How any of the stores even stayed open was beyond him. GameStop would get the Friday afternoon rush of middle school boys who had just gotten their allowances, but for most of the week, if it hadn't been against the rules, Matt could have spent his entire shift sleeping or playing his PSP and it wouldn't have made a difference. The only reason he even worked there was to get discounts on the game, and to earn a living.

A living. There was something about that phrase that hit him wrong. If this was his living, what kind of a living was it? He spent his days bored out of his mind watching over an empty GameStop in an empty mall, and he spent his nights in front of his computer, TV, or PSP playing games he bought with his discounts. He was going nowhere, doing nothing. It was as if he were stuck in limbo, suspended between his childhood and the real start of his life.

Matt wanted out.

He usually didn't do anything rash. He was extraordinarily lazy, but he usually didn't do anything against the rules- he just didn't do anything at all. He was absolutely sick of it, though. He wanted to shake the dust off that crummy old town and see the world. His manager was out to lunch, so there was nothing to stop him from pulling his goggles out of his backpack, pulling them over his eyes, slinging the bag over his shoulder, and heading out. He was sure the other bored shop workers saw him walking, but none of them bothered to say anything to him. He left the mall and headed down the main road, a street that lead through the tiny Plainsville town center and out into the nothingness around it.

Once Matt had left the town, he walked for about five minutes before he found himself coming to a stop. He had no clue what he was going to do, no clue where he was going to go. He had no plan, not to mention he was leaving behind his apartment full of expensive gaming equipment. This was possibly the stupidest thing he had ever done in his life.

Matt couldn't help but smile.

~~DAYS~~

Hours had gone by, and the highway seemed to stretch on forever. There was nothing to either side as far as the eye could see, except the low houses of Plainsville far in the distance behind him. Matt was getting tired and thirsty. The hot sun in the sky was starting to get to him. He wasn't about to turn back, though. He would sooner sleep by the side of the road than turn back.

Suddenly, from the corner of his ears, Matt heard the dull roar of a car behind him. He turned around to see a black dot racing towards him, dust flying up behind it. It certainly wasn't entirely on the road as it should have been, and it might not even have been on the right side of the road, but Matt couldn't really tell from that distance. He watched it approach for what seemed like eons. Finally, when he could see that it was a large black van, he lifted his arm out across the road, sticking up his thumb. They had a long time to notice him, so he figured that if they were willing to pick up a hitchhiker, they'd have plenty of time to slow their speed. He had been warned many times about hitchhiking because he had threatened to do it when he didn't have a car and wanted to go to the nearest city, but he didn't care. As far as he saw it, they had the distinct advantage, because with a van that size, its occupants probably outnumbered him.

The van finally grew closer to him. It flew towards him at breakneck speeds and he was almost afraid that it wasn't going to stop, that it would hit him, but instead it came to a screeching halt, stopping a few yards in front of him. From where he stood, Matt could see that the van actually looked rather sketchy, the black coat spreading over the windows and white gothic L curling across the side. He hesitated as he lowered his arm.

The passenger's door flew open before he had much of a chance to act, and out stepped a rather peculiar-looking man. He wore jeans and a plain white long-sleeved shirt, and his jet-black hair stuck out at rather odd angles. He had enormously deep bags under his eyes. It didn't seem as if he could stand up properly, either- he stood in a low, stooped hunch that Matt thought at first was from exiting the van, but remained long after he had exited. He certainly didn't help the van to look any less sketchy, either.

The man stared unblinkingly at Matt, making him feel a little uncomfortable.

"Woah," he finally said. "Your goggles…they make your eyes like- like headlights or something."

"Thanks?" Matt replied, unsure of whether the comment was really intended as a compliment.

He could practically smell the pot wafting off of the guy as he approached and stuck out a hand. "I'm L, by the way," he informed Matt. "I'm the general guitarist for the band, Lament the Fallen. I don't know if you've ever heard of us. We're pretty…underground."

Matt couldn't help but notice that the band name started with L, their van had an L on the side, and this guy's name was L. It was a little too much of that letter for him, but he wasn't about to criticize.

"I'm Matt," he said, shaking the guy's hand. For someone who looked rather weak, L had a surprisingly firm grip. "I haven't heard of you," he added.

"Well, you could always listen to our demo. Looks like you need a ride somewhere…where are you headed?"

Matt paused for a moment. Where was he headed? "I don't know," he answered truthfully. "Just somewhere other than Plainsville."

"Woah, that's deep," L said, his slightly bugging eyes staring through Matt's goggles. It was starting to creep him out how the guy never seemed to need to blink. "We're headed to Pointe City for a big gig. We've got plenty of room in the back." With that, he turned and walked towards the passenger's door to the van. Matt decided after a moment that L meant for him to follow, so he did. He hesitated when L climbed into the passenger's seat, but L turned around to face him from there.

"The painters kinda messed the van up, plus there's stuff blocking the back doors, so you gotta come in through here," he informed Matt. He moved to the side, and Matt climbed onto the seat. He was about to follow L into the back when he found himself face-to-face with a rather attractive leather-clad blond guy.

"This is Mello, by the way," L introduced. "Lead singer and sometimes guitarist. He's not really mellow, but it's a cool stage name, and it just sort of stuck, so you know…" He shrugged and hunched off down the van.

"Hey," Mello greeted with a smirk. Matt gave a half-smile and squeezed hurriedly through the seats after L. There was something about Mello that made him rather nervous.

Matt hadn't entirely noticed it from the outside, but the van was actually quite enormous. There were an entire drum set, two guitars in cases, and several amps stored in the back, but there was also ample space for seating, and even a table bolted to the floor. He plopped his bag on the table and sat himself down next to L. Across from L was another leather-clad person, this time a female brunette. She smiled at him, and something about her face led him to believe she was the only normal member of the band.

"I'm Naomi," she introduced.

"Matt," he replied curtly.

She looked like she was about to say something, but was interrupted by a shout from the front of the van.

"Let's get this show on the road!"

The vehicle lurched forward, quickly reaching breakneck speed. Matt gripped the table nervously, wishing that there were seatbelts- he had noticed when he sat down that there were not.

"Mello's a speed demon," Naomi commented apologetically.

There was an awkward silence among the passengers. L and Naomi seemed friendly enough, but Matt was still an outsider, making the situation a little awkward.

"Yo, Mel!" L suddenly shouted over Matt, causing him to cringe. "Matt hasn't heard our music!"

Matt could picture the blond's smirk as he saw a hand encased in a leather glove reach dangerously across into the glove compartment. He clung harder to the table, knowing that there was nothing for miles but still nervous about the fact that Mello was blatantly disregarding the road. He finally pulled out a shining silver CD and slipped it into the van's radio.

A few moments passed, and the sound of an electric guitar peeled through the space, backed by a steady drum beat. It wasn't what Matt usually listened to, but he didn't mind it- it was actually pretty good, better than he might have expected. L nodded his head to the beat and jammed out on an air guitar, while Naomi tapped subtly on the table along with the drums. When the lyrics came in, Matt could faintly hear a voice from the front of the van behind all the ruckus.

The lyrics were rather grotesque. Matt couldn't catch all of them, but he distinctly heard the words "fire," "tearing," "knife," and "blood." There was something like "hang me gently with this noose" before the voice changed to roaring screamo. This rendered the lyrics completely incomprehensible. The song finished on one extremely long word that Matt thought was the word "woe," but he forgot whether or not it really started with a "w" by the time it was finished.

In the brief silence between songs, both L and Naomi turned to him, their eagerness apparent in their faces. He shrugged.

"'s pretty cool," he told them. This rather vague answer seemed to satisfy them, and anything else they might have wanted to say was cut off by the next song.

~~DAYS~~

It didn't take Matt long to become comfortable with the band. Their music was a little too depressing for his taste, but it grew on him, and by the third repeat of their album he could actually understand most of the lyrics. The band members were all friendly, too, albeit strange. L's oddities were almost endearing, though his staring continued to unnerve Matt. He turned out to have a rapturous love of sugar, which his pot smoking only helped to increase. Naomi was quite the conversationalist, and very frank about her opinions. Both of them seemed to know a little about everything, and no subject seemed to be off-limits. Mello focused mostly on the road, which greatly relieved Matt, but occasionally he shouted back sharply snarky comments that Matt couldn't help but laugh at. They had only been driving for a few hours, but Matt felt like it had been days- many joyful, interesting days.

"I'm all out of chocolate up here!" Mello called back, interrupting a rather riveting conversation about one-on-one fighting games versus real life fighting. Both Naomi and L were practiced in a Brazilian martial art called capoeira, it turned out, which was actually the same fighting style as one of Matt's favorite characters in a game called Takedown.

L reached into one of his mysterious boxes tucked under the table from which he had been producing a steady stream of sweets. He pulled out a foil-wrapped chocolate bar which he handed to Matt. After a surprised moment, Matt took it and stumbled up to the front. He handed the bar to Mello, who proceeded to steer the van with his knees as he ripped open the foil package. Matt, who was now used to the fact that his life was in danger while Mello drove, turned his gaze to the road. This, of course, didn't help- they were swerving wildly between having two wheels off the road and veering into the other lane. The speed was dizzying, and Matt felt himself fall involuntarily into the passenger's seat. He looked away from the road and his eyes landed again on Mello, who was now steering with one hand but still paying more attention to his chocolate bar than to the road. He snapped off a piece of the bar with his teeth, creating a rather distinctive sound. Mello's attention turned from the chocolate bar briefly to the road and then came to land on Matt.

"What're you doing here?" he asked. The words were hostile, but the tone of his voice though sharp was not unwelcoming.

Matt shrugged. He didn't know why he was still sitting there, but for some reason he wasn't compelled to return to the back.

The silence that followed wasn't as awkward as Matt had expected it would be.

"So what's with this band thing?" Matt blurted out suddenly. He had been thinking it for a while, since the three members seemed like such a ragtag group of people. They were all friendly enough towards each other and they all seemed to work rather harmoniously, but each was so different from the others that Matt had to wonder what it was like when they fought, or if they fought more often and were just hiding their tension in the presence of a guest.

"Band thing?"

"Yeah."

Mello, who had turned himself back towards the road, didn't respond at first. Matt was beginning to wonder if Mello were just ignoring him when he spoke.

"It was all L's idea," he answered definitively. "We met in high school- he was a senior, I was a freshman. We hung out a little from time to time. Once in a while we'd have a jam session, but nothing serious. All of the sudden, he came up to me and was all like, 'Hey, do you want to start a band?' It was kind of out of the blue, because we hadn't played together for like a month, but I said 'sure.' I showed up at his house and there was Naomi with her drum set. I still don't know how he met her, but it doesn't really matter. The second we started our jam session, we all knew that it was going to work. We just sort of…clicked, I guess."

Another silence fell after Mello finished. It sounded almost too perfect, how smoothly things had gone. Matt wondered if Mello was lying, and this was a story they had concocted to make themselves sound good for the fans. Somehow, he still didn't understand how they could all get along so well and be so different.

As if he had heard Matt's silent question, Mello spoke once again. "You seem to get along well with them. That's how it is with me, too. We get each other somehow. It's almost like they're family…the family I never had."

Matt thought he saw Mello's hand tighten on the wheel, though he couldn't quite tell. Mello took another bite of his chocolate bar and focused on the road. It seemed like family was one of the few topics that was closed, so Matt turned his attention to the road as well.

Living in the middle of nowhere made Matt rather good at spotting things in the distance. It was no surprise that he was the first to notice a black dot on the horizon. After a few moments of staring intently at it as it grew marginally in size, he noticed that it did not seem to be moving at all. He waited until it was close enough to almost be recognized a car before he pointed it out to Mello.

"I think something happened there," Matt said, pointing outwards.

Mello squinted into the distance as he licked his chocolate bar. As they approached, it morphed into what appeared to be a stretch limo. Smoke billowed from what Matt guessed to be the hood.

After a few moments, they were joined by L and Naomi, who looked out from behind the front seats.

"Shit," L said elegantly. "Pull over," he told Mello. "They might need help or something."

Mello acquiesced, and this time they rolled rather pleasantly to a stop behind the limo.


	2. The Ride

There were four people scattered various places around the limo. A young blonde woman in a black sundress stood with her arms folded impatiently across her chest. A big straw sunhat shaded her eyes, and a petulant frown was painted on her red lips. A little ways away, a young man with a very expensive-looking suit and immaculately trimmed brown hair was in the middle of snatching a cellphone from a tall older male in a plain black suit. Another younger man with a suit matching the older one's was awkwardly attempting to peer into the hood of the car without sticking his head into the smoke.

The woman was the first to notice their arrival. She perked up a little but still looked rather irritated as she tromped over to the driver's side of the van in her overly high heels. Mello opened the door and looked as if he were about to step out, but L slipped between the seats and climbed over him before he had the chance to. Mello didn't seem like the type of person who would appreciate being put behind, but he didn't look upset by L's action. L dropped surprisingly gracefully to the ground as the woman reached the van.

"It's about time!" she stated rather huffily. "We've been waiting out here for almost twenty minutes. You shouldn't leave celebrities waiting like this. It's very rude, you know. We have a show to get to!"

A normal person would have asked her who the hell she thought she was, ordering around random strangers like they were her servants, but L was no normal person. He didn't say a word. Instead, he just stared unblinkingly at her, his eyes bugging slightly. She shrunk back a little, a look of disgust forming on her face.

"You're creepy," she stated plainly.

At this point, the man in the expensive suit came over. He put a hand on the young woman's back and gave L a haughty smile.

"I apologize for my fiancée," he said. "She's nervous because we have a competition in Pointe City tomorrow and we're running behind schedule because our limo broke down. I am Light Yagami. You might have heard of me…I'm pretty famous in the figure skating circuit. And this is my partner, Misa Amane." He extended his hand to L. "And you are…"

"You can call me L," he said, taking a firm hold of Light's hand. He didn't shake it, but just left it there for what seemed to Matt to be an awkwardly long period of time. Matt, at least, would have been trying to worm his hand away by that point. Light kept a smile plastered on his face, though any real sentiments backing it crept away. "Main guitarist for Lament the Fallen. You probably haven't heard of us," L continued. He turned his eyes back to Misa for a moment before looking back up at Light and finally releasing his hand. "You know, we're headed to Pointe City, if you'd like a ride…we've got some empty seats."

"Thank you for that generous offer. We'd be delighted to have the honor of riding with you," Light said, his voice dripping with sugary schmooze. Misa tugged on his arm and he exchanged a glance with her that seemed to become a silent conversation. Whatever it was that went between them, Light definitely appeared to win out. Misa sighed grudgingly and marched away towards the young man in the black suit who was still attempting to peer at the engine. Light turned to the older man standing a few feet away, and L climbed back into the van, looming awkwardly over Mello.

"We're taking them to Pointe City," he announced, though it was clear that all three of them had already heard. "Naomi, could you drive?"

Naomi nodded, but Mello looked thoroughly offended. "We'll get there an hour later if she drives!"

"Yes, but now there're guests in the car." L's eyes fell on Matt, and he quickly added, "Rich guests that wouldn't be afraid to sue us for lots of money." Matt had to admit he had quite the point there.

"Why are we even giving them a ride, then?" Mello snapped. He hadn't exactly rolled out the welcome mat for Matt, but he was beginning to think that how Mello had treated him thus far was as close as he came to that.

L shrugged. "Being good Samaritans, you know? Like, karma and stuff."

Mello grumbled, but he didn't argue any further. Apparently, that explanation was good enough for him to drop it.

"Umm…excuse me?"

The four in the van turned to look at Misa, whose attitude seemed to have completely transformed in the minutes she was gone. She wore a charming smile on her face, and looked generally more pleasant than when she had first met them.

"Do you have room for my luggage?" she asked politely.

"Sure," L replied and hopped out of the van. "We gotta pass it in through here," he said, gesturing to the driver's door, "because the back doors are blocked with our stuff, but we've got room."

Misa looked almost adorable when she turned and called, "Oh, Matsuda! Can you please bring my luggage here?"

Soon, the younger man in the black suit struggled over with an enormous suitcase that looked incredibly heavy. He set it down in front of the driver's door and leaned on the side of the van, panting with exhaustion.

"Hi, I'm…Touta Matsuda…pleased to…meet you!" he gasped, smiling as he attempted to catch his breath.

"I'm L," L introduced, "and this is Mello, Naomi, and Matt."

Matt was caught a little off guard by the fact that L introduced them all as a group, though he supposed there was no other logical way to introduce them without making the situation more awkward than necessary.

Matsuda took a few more heaving breaths before he grabbed a part of the suitcase and attempted to lift it a few inches off the ground. It seemed like a useless attempt, however, and before he could say anything to the contrary, the front seat was folded down and L and Mello were out lifting the suitcase. Naomi grabbed a hold of it and pulled, and after an awkward pause, Matt helped her. It was quite the struggle, and it nearly hit the horn on several occasions, but somehow the suitcase made it into the van, over the table, and back with the band's luggage.

"Damn." Mello exclaimed as he climbed back out of the van. "What, do you keep a department store in there?"

"A girl's gotta look her best, on and off the ice," Misa replied with a shrug.

It turned out that that wasn't all of Misa's luggage. She had a separate bag for makeup and hair products that was roughly the size of an airline carry-on, plus an additional case for her skates and some plastic-covered costumes that had to be hung. Light also had the last two items, though his personal suitcase was a great deal smaller than Misa's. Matsuda had a bag about the size of Misa's makeup case for all of his belongings. He, as it turned out, was one of two chauffeurs transporting Light and Misa to their ice show. The other's name was Mogi, and he was left behind to wait for the mechanics.

With the addition of three new people and their luggage, the van didn't seem nearly as big as it had when Matt first entered. He was the last to settle in the back, choosing to crowd the side where L and Mello were sitting as opposed to seating himself next to two complete strangers. Yes, L and Mello were technically strangers too, but he felt a connection to them that he just didn't feel with the newcomers.

As Matt reached into his backpack to pull out his PSP, he could tell that this was going to be a long trip.

~~DAYS~~

With a flourish and a repetitive battle cry, he slashed at his opponent with his overly large sword. His opponent was hit by the blow, but was up quickly, aiming a flame attack at him. He was too quick for his opponent, though. He dodged the attack and leapt into the air, raining a furious lightning attack down as he somehow remained suspended in the battlefield's seeming lack of gravity. His opponent rose to join him in the air and struck him down to the ground. Another attack was aimed against him, which he could easily block if he-

"What're you playing?" a voice asked in his ear.

Matt nearly jumped a foot in the air. He saw Mello looming far too close to him before remembering he was in the middle of a battle. He looked back just in time to see his character die a horrible death. With an exasperated sigh, he saved the game and turned his attention back to Mello.

"Well, I was playing Ultimate Saga, but you've ruined my perfect score, so now I'm going to have to start over again."

"Oh."

Matt turned back to the screen. He went to restart, but he could feel Mello watching and it made him nervous, so instead he shut the PSP off and tucked it back into his backpack. Without thinking, he drew out his pack of cigarettes and his lighter.

"Hey, could I have one?"

Matt was surprised to look up and see Misa staring enviously at the package of cigarettes on the table. He hardly knew her, but she didn't seem like the type to smoke cigarettes. Then again, cigarettes didn't really have a type.

"Sure." Matt pulled one out and handed it to her. It was quickly snatched away by Light.

"You really shouldn't be smoking," he scolded. "You know it's horrible for you. It messes with your breathing. And besides, you know how much I hate the smell of smoke."

Misa crossed her arms petulantly as Light handed the cigarette back to Matt. He was about to light up when L chimed in.

"Please don't smoke in the van," L requested. "It kinda chokes everyone up, you know?"

Matt sighed and tucked his cigarettes and lighter away. He silently wished he had thought to light up back when they picked up Light and Misa. He looked up to see Mello surveying him with disapproval.

"What?"

Mello shrugged. "Didn't know you smoked."

"Does it matter?"

Mello shrugged again and looked away rather moodily.

"So, what instrument do you play?" Misa asked. It took Matt a moment to realize that this direction was directed at him.

"Oh, I'm not in the band," he corrected. "I was just hitchhiking, and they picked me up."

Misa looked between the strangely-dressed hitchhiker and the owners of the sketchy van he had willingly climbed into, plainly trying to decide which one had been crazier in their decision.

"You fit in rather well here," Light sighted, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen.

"I guess," Matt said with a shrug. He hated being the center of attention, and he certainly seemed to be at the moment. He looked over at Mello and L, people whom he had a much easier time conversing with, but Mello still looked a little broody and L had occupied himself with a box of sugar cubes, so Matt figured he was on his own. When he tried to think of a topic of conversation that would require little input on his half, he drew up blank.

"So, you two are professional figure skaters?" L finally said as he examined a sugar cube held delicately between his two fingers.

"Yes," both Light and Misa confirmed enthusiastically.

This was the golden ticket Matt had been looking for. The young couple prattled on about figure skating as a sport and their personal careers, throwing in the occasional personal story such as how they met. It seemed their lives revolved around the ice. Matt tuned them out a few sentences in, nodding whenever Misa's eager eyes landed on him.

As they talked, it grew dark outside the van until it reached the point where L had to climb onto the table to turn on the overhead light. Matt, wondering what time it was, pulled out his cellphone. He had several missed calls, a few messages, and about fifty texts waiting for him. This surprised him a little, since usually nobody talked to him, but he supposed disappearing in the middle of his shift at work would cause wonder in a hick town like Plainsville. After seeing that it was six twenty-seven, he turned his phone off and put it away.

Matt turned to look at Light and Misa again, who were arguing over a part of their routine for the competition, when a half-eaten chocolate bar obstructed his view.

"Want some?"

"No thanks," Matt declined, shaking his head.

Mello snapped off another piece of the chocolate bar with his teeth, watching Matt carefully.

"Is something wrong?" he finally asked.

"'s nothing," Matt lied. He didn't want to admit to himself that he was beginning to question his decision to leave Plainsville, let alone talk to someone else about it.

The silence stretched on for what seemed like an eternity, but probably only lasted a half an hour at the most. Misa and Light argued over a broad variety of topics during this time, none of which Matt paid any attention to, and Mello finished what was probably his third or fourth chocolate bar of the day.

"We're almost to Pointe City!" Matsuda announced excitedly as he peered around the passenger's seat.

Matt had almost forgotten he was sitting up there with Naomi and was rather startled by this announcement. He leaned awkwardly over the table, trying to see out the windshield. Sure enough, a glitter of lights approached them from the horizon.

The spell of silence in the back of the van broke at this announcement.

"Our dinner reservations are shot," Misa said wistfully. "We could still order room service, though…Ooh! We could make it a nice romantic evening…"

"We do have to go to bed at a decent hour, remember? We have to be in a good condition for the competition," Light retorted.

"But…"

Matt tuned them out as Light began to speak.

"So, what're we looking for tonight?"

"Chinese," Mello declared, as Naomi shouted "Pizza!" from the front.

"…fried chicken it is," L said decisively.

All this talk of food, in addition to making him hungry, made him think about what he was going to do once he reached Pointe City. He had enough money for a meal, but he had no idea what he was going to do after that. He could maybe afford to stay in a really crappy hotel on the edge of town for one night, but he didn't know if that would even be worth the money with the expensive, easy-to-steal items he had with him. He wasn't willing to grapple with the idea of selling them yet, but the idea was at the back of his mind.

"You're coming to dinner with us," Mello announced, breaking his train of thought.

"Okay."

"What, you don't like Chinese?" Mello joked. Matt knew the anxiety was probably visible on his face, even though he tried to hide it.

"No, Chinese is good…it's nothing," Matt lied for the second time.

As they drove at last into Pointe City, Matt felt a hole form in the pit of his stomach.


	3. The Dinner

The hotel that Misa and Light were staying at looked like the kind of place that would've cost Matt a month's salary at his old job to book the smallest room for one night. The smallest room, granted, would probably have been about the size of his Plainsville apartment. It made him nervous just being near the building as he helped Mello, Naomi, and Matsuda unload Light and Misa's luggage onto the front stoop, where a bellboy had shown up instantaneously to assist the rich young couple. From what he could see of the lobby through the big glass doors, it looked like the kind of place that probably wouldn't let him in wearing his current outfit. Everyone he saw was dressed up, whether patron or worker, though to varying degrees- one peculiar man was wearing a white suit a few sizes too big that matched the frosty hue of his hair. Matt felt relieved when the bags were all out and it was time to wish Light and Misa goodbye.

"Thank you for everything," Light said graciously, offering them each a handshake.

"It was awfully kind of you to drive us so far," Misa added with a charming smile. "How can we repay you?"

"No payment necessary," L told her after he finished shaking Light's hand.

"I insist," Misa pressed, pulling a checkbook out of her purse.

"Well, I insist as well. You don't need to pay us anything; it was our pleasure."

"Well, alright," Misa said, putting her checkbook away.

Mello and Naomi both looked as though they were about to kill L.

"That is very generous of you," Light said diplomatically.

"Still, I feel bad not giving you anything in return," Misa admitted. After a moment, her face lit up. "I know! How about you come to our competition tomorrow!"

Now it was Light's turn to cover up a glare. "Misa, I don't know if we can-"

"It's the perfect idea," she insisted. "We have some open seats in our box, right?" She turned back to L. "Think of it as a friendly invitation. It'll be great to see you again!"

Even L looked bewildered as Misa pulled out a small notebook, scribbled down the location and time of the show, ripped out the page, and stuffed it into his hands, talking all the while.

"Well, we should probably get going," Light inputted when Misa took a pause to breathe. "I suppose we'll see you tomorrow, then."

The two groups bid an awkward farewell and parted ways. Matt, Mello, and L were settled in the back of the van and Naomi was about to start driving when suddenly, they heard a knock on the passenger's door. It was Matsuda, looking nervous and awkward as ever.

"The hotel I'm staying at is several blocks from here, and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind giving me a ride?" he asked awkwardly.

"Not at all," Naomi stated with a smile. "Come on in."

Matsuda reseated himself in the passenger's seat, smiling gratefully.

"You see, I usually drive the limo to the motel from their hotel, but since it broke down, I don't exactly have a way to get there," he explained, as the van roared into motion. "I don't have money for a cab or anything, and Light and Misa would never pay for that. N-not that they're mean people or anything," he added quickly. "They're perfectly nice. They just…"

Matsuda's defense of his bosses was cut off by a shout of "Chinese, off the port bow!" and a blatant point out the passenger's window of the van by Mello, who had not felt the need to be reseated and stood between the driver's and passenger's seats.

"The port bow is left," Matt muttered, but he was overshadowed by Naomi's loud declaration that they were still several blocks from their hotel and that pizza would invariably be closer. L looked as if he wanted to scold them both for interrupting Matsuda, but Matsuda himself didn't seem to mind.

"Hey, do you want to eat with us?" Naomi offered.

"Who, me?" Matsuda looked genuinely surprised that she was talking to him, though there was really no one else she would be addressing at that moment. "Oh, no, thank you. I think I'll just stay in the room. I have some work to catch up on."

Naomi shrugged her shoulders. "Suit yourself."

A few minutes later, they drove by the hotel that they were supposed to be staying at. After pointing and loud protestation from Mello, Naomi explained that they needed to find somewhere to park. There was a parking garage a few blocks down with a fairly empty second floor, enabling them to park perpendicularly across several spaces.

"You could've dropped us off," Mello mumbled as they tumbled out of the car into the dark parking garage.

The strange party paraded out of the parking garage and down the street to the hotel. It wasn't exactly a high-class place, but it was somewhere warm and dry to sleep, which gave Matt a pang of worry as L and Matsuda checked in. He forced on a smile when he caught Mello looking at him, and held it as they parted ways with their new friend and headed out to dinner.

As soon as they set foot out of the hotel, L, Naomi, and Mello went on the alert, leaving Matt trailing awkwardly behind them. They argued for a little while on which direction to go in. Once they finally decided which way to go, they walked mostly in silence, except when one of them spotted something that was potentially a fast food or Chinese restaurant. Anyone who saw the group would guess that they were enemies with some strange requirement tying them to dinner together. Matt could tell, though, that it was their form of an odd jesting tradition.

In the end, Naomi won when they came across a small pizzeria tucked in between a darkened store and a small grocery. Faded letters spelled out the name 'Leaning Tower of Pizza' over the glass entry door, where a neon 'Open' sign blinked sporadically. A bell jingled on the door as they entered the small restaurant, and the woman cleaning off the tower looked up.

"Hello," she greeted with a smile. "Have a seat anywhere you like, I'll get you some menus." She disappeared beneath the counter, and the strange quartet took a random table in the otherwise empty eatery. L crouched oddly in his chair, Mello sort of splayed himself out while still looking sulky, and Matt and Naomi sat like normal human beings.

The woman reappeared in a moment and dropped a laminated menu in front of each of them. "Can I start you off with something to drink?" she asked, before they really had a chance to read anything.

Apparently, Matt's compatriots didn't need time to decide.

"I'll have a Coke, please," Naomi asked politely.

"Pabst Blue Ribbon," Mello demanded.

"Would you happen to have cream soda?" L asked the waitress.

"Yes, we do," she informed him with a smile.

"I'll have one, then…and please add two packets of sugar to it."

The waitress looked utterly perplexed. "Sure," she said, after determining that this was not in fact a joke. She turned to Matt, the bewilderment on her face not disappearing entirely. "And what would you like to drink, sir?"

Matt looked at the drink prices. As much as he would have liked to order a beer, even the cheapest ones made his wallet ache, thinking of how he would lodge himself that night. Sodas even seemed to be just that bit too much. Since he would have to pay for a meal and a room, Matt figured he should cut corners where he could.

"I'll have a water," he told her meekly.

Mello looked as if he were about to say something, but a glare from L and Naomi silenced him. He settled back into his seat, folding his arms across his chest and mumbling something about "it's not my problem."

"Okay, so…a Coke, a PBR, a cream soda with two packets of sugar, and water," the waitress reiterated. "I'll be right back out with that." She swept quickly away from the table, leaving them to scan their menus.

"Do you like pineapple pizza?" Naomi asked Matt.

"You mean, like, Hawaiian pizza?"

Naomi shook her head scornfully. "Hawaiian pizza means there's ham. Ham does not belong on a pizza. No, I mean just pineapples on top."

"I've never tried that before," Matt said, considering the combination. "I guess it could be good."

"Who the hell would want fruit on a pizza?" Mello snapped.

"Oh, stop being such a bitch just because you lost," Naomi shot at him, rolling her eyes.

"That has nothing to do with this. I just don't want fruit on my pizza."

"Tomatoes are fruits," L pointed out.

"Yea, but they're more like vegetables. Besides, tomatoes belong on pizza. Pineapple does not."

"Relax, we'll only get half pineapple," Naomi said with an exasperated sigh. She muttered something insulting involving maturity levels under her breath, which luckily Mello either didn't hear or chose to ignore.

The waitress returned to give them their drinks and take their pizza order. In a surprisingly short amount of time, she returned and set the piping hot pizza in front of them. Bad moods and insults were forgotten as Matt, Mello, and Naomi downed slice after hot slice. Pineapple, as it turned out, was quite delicious on pizza.

After a little while and most of the pizza, Matt noticed that L hadn't eaten a single slice, though he had done some pretty good damage on his sweetened cream soda.

"You know, you should probably get some before it all disappears," Matt joked.

"I'm fine," L assured him. "I do not find sugarless foods to be very appetizing. I think I'll try the pineapple, though." He gingerly plucked a piece out of the cardboard box and placed it on the plate in front of him. He took one bite and made a face.

Mello laughed as L gulped down the rest of his drink. "I told you fruit on pizza was a bad idea."

"Oh, no, the pineapple is quite good. It's the sauce, the cheese, and the crust that I find inedible," L replied, plucking the pieces of pineapple off the top of pizza and eating them one by one.

Matt stared incredulously at L. He didn't know it was possible for someone to just generally hate pizza, but here he was, faced with a man who had just deemed the essence of pizza inedible. As far as Matt was concerned, pizza was the food of the gods.

"L has always eaten weirdly," Naomi told him. "He spurns even the most delicious of foods if they do not involve fruit or copious amounts of sugar."

"And it has nothing to do with…extenuating circumstances," Mello added, censoring himself as the waitress approached the table.

"I see you've done quite a number on the pizza," she said, noting the scattered remains of the pizza still in the box. "Can I get you folks anything else, or are you all set?"

"We'll just have the check, please," L informed her.

"Okay, I'll be right back with that!" The waitress dashed off once again. She returned a moment later, and Matt felt his stomach drop.

L studied the check carefully. "Not too bad," he muttered, pressing his thumb against his lips.

"Why don't we just get out of here?" Mello suggested. "You know, dine and ditch, free pizza for life…"

"We are not doing that," L snapped at him.

"It's just pizza. It's not like it costs that much," Naomi said, though Matt wasn't entirely sure to whom it was directed.

"I'll pay for it," Matt found himself saying, before he could stop himself.

The other three turned and stared at him.

"I mean, it's the least I can do…you did drive me all that way." Matt wanted himself to stop, but he couldn't, not now that he had offered. He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and reached a hand out towards L for the receipt. "What's the damage?"

"You don't have to do this," Naomi insisted, as L surrendered the check.

"But I want to," Matt insisted. He was lying completely, since he already had no idea how he was going to afford his spontaneous move to the city, but he would feel horrible if he backed out by that point. "You've all been so awesome to me. I feel like I've gotta do something for you."

The price wasn't so bad, but it cleaned out the cash in his wallet. He skimped a little on the tip, but he figured he wouldn't be thinking about the guilt when he was frantically job-searching the next day.

"So…what now?" Naomi asked as the four stood up.

"Mind if I go for a smoke?" L asked the group, though his gaze fell on Matt in particular.

"Not at all," Matt replied. "I could really go for one too…I mean, my brand of smoke." He saw Mello's look of disgust out of the corner of his eye and chose to ignore it.

"Let's go find a good spot," Naomi said, leading the group out of the restaurant and onto the street.

~~DAYS~~

A "good spot" turned out to be a small children's park in the shadier part of the city, out of sight of the main roads and lit only by the faint glow of far-off streetlamps. Matt felt like he was going to trip at any moment, but apparently the other three were accustomed to such sketchy settings, and they led him around the shadowy shapes of see-saws and swing sets to a large dome-shaped jungle gym. L climbed a few rungs and somehow managed to balance in a squatting position. He drew two plastic bags out of his pockets, one containing a green substance and the other several slips of paper, and busied himself with the delicate process of rolling a joint. Matt pulled a pack of cigarettes and his lighter out of his own pocket. He extracted one of the slender sticks and placed it between his lips.

"Hey, mind if I have one?" Naomi asked.

Matt held out the pack to her. Once she had chosen one, he slid the box into his pocket and lit Naomi's cigarette before lighting his own and taking a puff. It took him a moment in the darkness to realize that one of their number was missing. Matt could see his silhouette from where he sat on a nearby swing.

"What's his problem with smoking?" he asked, leaning against the jungle gym.

"It's a family thing," Naomi told him. "It's…complicated." She took a drag on her cigarette. "I probably shouldn't tell you anymore," she said, after exchanging a glance with L. "Hell, I probably shouldn't have told you anything at all, but having to put up with him all the time, I know how frustrating it can be to deal with his moodiness, especially when you have no clue what it's about."

Matt nodded slightly. He had almost forgotten that he hadn't known them long enough to ask personal questions like that. He had only known them for the better part of a day, if that. It seemed like he had known them for much longer, though. It felt like he was living in a different life, so far from GameStop and his tiny apartment lined with wires and littered with ramen containers.

He was in a different life, in a way. Matt was living a new life, one where he made rash decisions, became attached to strangers, and didn't think about the future until it smacked him in the face. He felt it smacking him as he looked up at the sky and saw a star or two appearing. It was getting later by the second, and he still had nowhere to stay. He could probably find a room in a hotel, but what about the next day? He would have to go find a new apartment then, which would certainly be more expensive than it had been in Plainsville. Then he'd have to find a job, and who would hire a guy who walked out on his long-standing GameStop job?

Matt looked over at L and Naomi. L was staring outward at nothing in particular, his joint clamped elegantly between two fingers. Naomi had her eyes closed as she lay back against the jungle gym, taking an occasional drag from her cigarette. Neither of them seemed to have any pressing need to leave this spot anytime soon. In fact, they had only mentioned what they were doing here in Ash City once in the hours he'd met them. They had said something about a performance, but they didn't even seem worried about practicing. Matt had to wonder if they really worried about anything at all.

Matt wished he could be that carefree. Taking such a dangerous leap wouldn't feel so burdensome and frightening if he could get himself to stop worrying about it.

Matt took one more drag of his cigarette before tossing it on the ground and stamping it out. He wanted to turn his thoughts into some sort of conversation, or get his mind off of all of it, but he thought it would be best to leave L and Naomi in peace. Instead, he wandered over to the swing set where Mello still brooded.

"Hey," Matt greeted.

"Yo."

Matt tried to coax his thoughts into a coherent sentence. Instead he managed to open and close his mouth several times. He was glad that he was barely visible.

"You never said where you were staying," Mello pointed out before Matt managed to get out any words.

"I don't know where I'm staying," Matt admitted quietly.

"Stay with us," Mello urged. "We've got room."

"I- I couldn't impose on you like that. I mean, you already-"

"I wasn't suggesting," Mello informed him. He stood up as Naomi and L came over, and the three began to walk off together. "Come on already," Mello called over his shoulder, and Matt hurried to catch up.

Matt was going to have to come up with something spectacular to repay his debt to these three. At this point, he was thinking he'd have to commit armed robbery to obtain the proper compensation.


End file.
